UAE Culture Minister Visits Sharjah's 'Museums Express'

UAE Culture Minister visits Sharjah's 'Museums Express'

SHARJAH, (Pakistan Point News - 26th Feb, 2020) The country’s Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, Noura Al Kaabi, visited the first-of-its-kind 'Museums Express', a mobile museum, which was launched by the Sharjah Museums Authority last year, displaying replicas of exhibits from different Sharjah museums.

Al Kaabi did this during a stop at the Umm Omarah Girls school for Secondary Education in Khor Fakkan, and was accompanied by Manal Ataya, Director-General of Sharjah Museums Authority.

The Minister praised the initiative and said, "The ‘Museums Express’ project highlights the importance of museums and introduces the public to archaeological findings and treasures that the UAE is home to. With a rich database of information and unique experiences, this project innovatively combines entertainment and education to develop public awareness about the country’s history and successive civilisations that flourished here."

Officials taking part in the tour also included Najla Abdullah Al Darwishi, District Director at the Ministry of Education; Mohammed Al-Mulla, Secretary-General of Sharjah Private Education Authority; and representatives of Bee’ah, the initiative’s official sponsor.

"Onboard the mobile museum, children can investigate things such as a model of Ibn Majid’s compass, a 5000-year-old necklace, a 19th-century glider, and an astrolabe, historically used by astronomers and navigators to measure the altitude above the horizon of a celestial body, day or night," said Ataya.

The collection on display is based on creativity and exploration, including artefacts, early inventions and traditional medicine ingredients.

After the tour, Al Kaabi attended a workshop by Emirati artist, Khalil Abdel Wahad, and then visited Hisn Khor Fakkan, which was inaugurated last April by H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah.

Since its launch in January 2019, approximately 7,000 employees of private and public entities have visited the Museums Express.

The 47-passenger bus is expected to reach over 5,000 pupils attending 12 public schools in Khor Fakkan, Kalba, Wadi Elhelio, Al Madam and Dibba Al Hisn areas, after having made 28 visits to 14 schools in Sharjah’s eastern and central regions during its first phase.

The bus makes a maximum of two visits a week, during which pupils enjoy a 20-minute guided tour on board before engaging in workshops about the elements and features of abstract art for another 50 minutes.